Gamer thought it would be ‘funny’ to kill homeless man

A man was seen violently beating and killing a homeless man in the stairwell of a city gaming café before punching another tramp in the face.

Pei Lui allegedly said: “Do you know how funny it would be if we killed this guy?” before launching a sustained and violent attack on Tao Cheng, 25, and then stealing his phone.

Mr Cheng’s body was found in the stairwell leading to the 24-hour FBI Gaming café in the Sydney CBD on December 7, 2022.

“Mr Lui beat Mr Cheng by punching, hitting, kicking and stomping on him,” Attorney General Christopher Taylor said at the opening of the NSW Supreme Court case in May.

There was blood on the walls and floor, and the 25-year-old’s trouser pockets were turned inside out.

Lui, now 31, was found guilty of manslaughter but was acquitted of murder by a jury on Friday.

Mr Taylor failed to convince the jury that the actor had intent to kill at the time of the incident.

Details of the violent attack could emerge after strict publication bans on the identity of the co-accused were finalized on Tuesday.

As the trial began, Mr Taylor said the brutal attack took place over a two-hour period three days before Mr Cheng’s body was found.

Lui and another man, now known by the pseudonym John Henry, were initially charged with murder.

Both men were captured on CCTV footage recorded during Lui’s trial entering and exiting the fire escape during the attack.

Lui’s barrister, John Stratton SC, sought to pin the blame on Henry, saying he had fled the state after receiving publicity over Mr Cheng’s death.

Mr Taylor told the jury the men poured cleaning products and used a fire hose on Mr Cheng while he was dead or unconscious.

The duo then took the homeless man’s phone and left to go to the nightclub.

On the way there, Lui hit an unidentified homeless man while walking in Hyde Park, the prosecutor said.

“Mr Lui pushed the homeless male to the ground and punched him in the face,” he told the jury.

They then danced for two hours at a club before going out for a kebab.

Lui was arrested on December 16, 2022, and Henry was captured by police in Queensland four days later.

After the jury was discharged at the trial, Henry’s plea of ​​guilty to involuntary manslaughter was accepted by prosecutors.

In December he was sentenced to six years in prison with a non-parole period of three years and three months.

Lui faces a sentencing hearing on August 7.